Hide wa Mamorigami!?
Hide wa Mamorigami!? (ヒデは守り神！？) is the 28th episode of Crush Gear Nitro. It was originally aired in Japan on August 24, 2003. Synopsis Plot Hidetoshi and his friends are enjoying the surroundings during their ride inside a flying Field Car before he talks with Kondo and Saito. As the former excitedly holds Wingraptor X up, it slips from his hand and the three boys attempt to catch it. Thinking that they manage to grab the Gear (their efforts are literally empty-handed), they are shocked to see Wingraptor X moving along the ledge. However, the Gear falls from the Field Car and into the jungle. Later, Hidetoshi is searching for Wingraptor X in the jungle with Kondo and Saito following him. Suddenly they hear a rustling sound from a bush, which turns out to be a group of children who had found the Gear. As Hidetoshi is glad for his Gear being found, the three children are happy when seeing him and calling him "Dehi", leaving him puzzled. They then lead Hidetoshi to their village where its residents consist entirely of children. Upon arrival Hidetoshi is met with Laska, one of the village children who has just finished Gear Fighting and identifies him as Dehi as well. Kondo and Saito are wondering what is going on until the latter notices three statues in the village, where one of them resembles Hidetoshi himself. When everyone goes to the statues, Laska introduces himself and explains to Hidetoshi and his friends that Dehi is a guardian of the village. Hidetoshi tells him that he is not Dehi. Laska points out that the Gear that Hidetoshi holds has the resemblence of Dehi's red bird. He eventually asks Hidetoshi for a Gear Fight. Both Kondo and Saito tell Laska not to do so, but Hidetoshi decides to have a battle with him despite what his sidekicks say. Meanwhile at the ruins, Masaru and Natsumi are wondering about Hidetoshi's whereabouts. Later, Makoto tells them to follow him to an ancient mural which depicts the three statues in the village. This makes the Mahha brothers and Natsumi to laugh at the mural (complete with a beam-like effect) before Firudo-ya, Ginjirou and Mrs. Mahha tell them to keep quiet. However as Masaru points to the ancient drawing that resembles Hidetoshi, the grown-ups laugh at it as well as the children (with a much stronger beam effect). At the village, Hidetoshi is being fed by the children who constantly goes back and forth for him. Later, he is prepared for a duel with Laska. During the battle Laska initiates his Nitro, makes his Gear to roll sideways and sends Wingraptor X out from the ring and onto the red bird statue. Hidetoshi and others could not believe that Laska posesses Nitro as well. During sunset at the ruins, Masaru and Natsumi are still wondering about Hidetoshi. Mrs. Mahha tells them that he might be in the jungle. At night, everyone in the village gathers in front of the Dehi statue. Laska asks about his Nitro and other questions to Hidetoshi. Later, Kondo and Saito are awakened from their sleep when they realize that Hidetoshi is not in his bed. They go outside the hut and find him talking to the Dehi statue. Hidetoshi is then seen in his bed, looking at his Gear and eventually falls asleep. When Hidetoshi wakes up the next morning, Kondo and Saito's beds are empty and he hears a scream from outside. Hidetoshi sees many children lying on the ground when he is about to go out. He quickly goes to Laska who has been terribly defeated in a Gear Fight. After seeing a boy snatching a Crush Gear from a village child, Laska tells Hidetoshi that a gang of children came to the village and defeated everyone in duels. A masked boy, who is at the ring, calls out for a battle. Hidetoshi readily accepts his challenge. The battle begins and the masked boy initiates his Nitro, causing Wingraptor X to be repeatedly attacked by the masked boy's Gear. Hidetoshi's Gear is nearly thrown out, and the masked boy starts to taunt him. Kondo and Saito, who have just back from finding food, ask Hidetoshi on what is going on. Both of them are surprised when seeing the village children's stolen Gears, and they quickly go to the Dehi statue to ask for Dehi's help. They eventually stop doing so and turns to Hidetoshi instead. Kondo and Saito show their support to their friend by chanting "Hide-san saikou! Hide-san saikyou! Hide-san muteki!" ("Hide-san is the best! Hide-san is the strongest! Hide-san is unbeatable!" in Japanese), with the rest of the village children following suit. This makes Hidetoshi to fight back, even though he feels the pain from his attacked Gear and could not control his balance. As Wingraptor X is thrown mid-air, his Nitro is awakened and his Gear goes along the side of the ring. Then it creates three tornados before making one for itself to go towards the masked boy's Gear and attacks it. As a result from the battle, the boy's mask splits into half before he surrenders and runs away with his gang members. Everyone is happy for Hidetoshi's victory. Later, Laska thanks Hidetoshi for saving them and compliments his Nitro. Hearing the latter part, Hidetoshi, Kondo and Saito are happy for they manage to discover the former's Nitro. As the Field Car arrives to fetch them, the Mahha brothers and Natsumi notice the Dehi statue. Hidetoshi and his sidekicks bid goodbye to the village children when they are about to leave. The episode ends with a Crush Gear World Championship match which is about to start. To Hidetoshi's surprise, his contender turns out to be the masked boy (he wears a different outfit this time and starts to cry). Trivia * At the beginning of the episode, the Field Car is seen going above several Nazca line drawings. One of the drawings has a rough resemblance to Dalek, an extraterrestrial race from the science fiction series Doctor Who. * The name of the village's guardian, Dehi is actually Hide (Hidetoshi's nickname) syllabically spelt backwards. * The attack made by Wingraptor X after its Nitro is activated is a precursor of its special attack later on in Crush Gear Nitro. * The name of the masked boy, Naijiji appears during the credits although his name is not mentioned throughout the episode. * The design of Naijiji's Gear is similar to Jalanaa Dina, a Gear from Crush Gear Turbo. However it is equipped with the IOD system in this episode. * During the World Championship match, the screen behind Naijiji is flickering, while that behind Hidetoshi appears normal. Category:Crush Gear Nitro episodes